Condom cleaning apparatus

ABSTRACT

An article having a condom-receiving pouch and features for personal hygiene useful for any removal, disposal and clean up that is required after condom use, and kit with same.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) to U.S.Provisional Patent No. 61/464,678, filed Mar. 11, 2011, which is hereinincorporated for all purposes.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is in the technical field of Personal Care. Moreparticularly, the present invention is in the technical field of adisposable article to be used with condoms.

Condoms are well known and widely used. In conventional post-condom use,cleaning is performed with toilet paper, hand towels, underwear,trousers, or whatever is handy. These items are either non-disposable,non-hygienic, or often unsatisfactory, lacking absorbency, flexibilityand odor-eliminating properties. Also not addressed is sanitary disposalof the used condom. Generally, no satisfactory post-coitus solutionaddressing personal hygiene and condom disposal is available.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a disposable condom-receivingpouch-like device having an inside surface and an outside surface. Theinside surface is an absorbent material and the outside surface is awater-resistant material; the condom-receiving pouch is formed withopening and depth configured for enclosingly removing a used condom froma penis by hand. The device may also include an outside layer or pad ofabsorbent material adapted for perigenital cleaning. The absorbentmaterial may include a deodorant.

In a first embodiment, the pouch comprises a generally tubular sectionhaving an open end and a closed end, and the open end may include a lipwith drawstring for sealing the used condom within the pouch. Thegenerally tubular section may be crinkled, conical, or bulbous asdesired for ease of application and may be kinked to better secure theused condom.

In another embodiment, the pouch is a mitten for wearing over a handwhen removing a condom, and the mitten is configured to be turned insideout after removing said used condom. The mitten is formed with anabsorbent inner surface and a water-resistant outer surface. The mittenmay include an outside absorbent layer or pad overlying thewater-resistant outside surface. In use the outer absorbent layer or padcontacts the used condom, and after being turned inside out, theabsorbent inside surface is used for perigenital cleaning.

For convenience, the inventive device may be provided as a kit, the kitincluding a condom and a disposable pouch-like device. Thecondom-disposal device may also include a wrist strap so as secureduntil needed and not misplaced.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is a schematic of the device, showing positions of lateral andlong-axis sections viewed in FIGS. 1B and 1C. FIG. 1C illustrates ageneral cross-sectional view; FIG. 1B a section taken through the longaxis of the device.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are detailed views of the outside and inside surfacelayers of the device showing a two-layered structure and a three-layeredstructure.

FIG. 3A is a perspective view of a first embodiment of the inventionwith drawstring. FIG. 3B is a detailed view of a modified lip indicatinga draw string feature in section.

FIG. 4 is a schematic view of a device with kinked tubular section.

FIG. 5 is a schematic view of a device with crinkled tubular section.

FIG. 6A is a schematic view of a mitten having the features of thedevice and, as shown in FIG. 6B, a three-layered mitten construction.

FIG. 7 is a view of a kit with condom and with a representative deviceof the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The foregoing and other objectives, features, and advantages of theinvention will be more readily understood upon consideration of thefollowing detailed description of the invention, taken in conjunctionwith the accompanying drawings.

Referring now to FIG. 1A, shown is a device 1 with body having agenerally tubular sleeve 2 and internal pouch 3 (shown in FIGS. 1B and1C in section), the pouch typically having an open end 4 and a closedend 5. The pouch cavity 3 or pocket is formed between two walls (7, 8).In a preferred construction, the walls are sealed together (by folding,sewing, gluing, ultrasonic welding, and so forth) at edge seams 9 toform pouch cavity 3 with open end 4. Open end 4 includes a lip 19.

Each wall has an inside surface and an outside surface. The outsidesurface 6 is external to the device; the inside surface faces theinternal cavity of the device. Wall materials are selected forabsorbance, flexibility, and/or leak resistance. Walls can be made ofone or of multiple layers to achieve suitable qualities. Outside surfacemay be made water-resistant, for example, to ensure lack of leakage.Inside surface is typically an absorbent material so as to improve fluidretention.

For illustration, possible wall structures are detailed in FIGS. 2A and2B. In a first construction, illustrated in FIG. 2A, the walls areformed of two layers (10, 11) with a water resistant surface 12 on theoutside and a water absorbent surface, pad or layer 13 on the inside.While separate layers are indicated, the layers also may be combined,for example in a composite material having an impervious coat or film onone side and a fibrous bat on the other. Adsorbent materials forpersonal hygiene are well known in the art, as are impervious surfacessuch as films of polyethylene, vinyl, polycarbonate, and the like.

In a second construction, illustrated in FIG. 2B, the walls are formedof three layers (14, 15, 16) as in a sandwich, with a water imperviouslayer 15 in the middle and having absorbent layers or pads on theoutside 17 and the inside 18 surfaces thereof. Absorbent wall layers orpads 17 may function as wipes for perigenital cleaning after the condomis removed and hence need not cover the entire outside surface of thedevice body.

The pouch body is sufficiently wide and long for comfortable condomremoval and may be about 10 to 15 inches deep and about 3 to 6 incheswide as determined to be comfortable for use, while not limited thereto.In use, the used condom is enclosingly inserted into the pouch 3 whileon the penis. A hand clamps down on the condom and withdraws the condomwhile in the pouch. The condom is permitted to sink into the closed end5 of the pouch, which is sealed or folded prior to disposal. Byproviding absorbent pads or layers 14 on at least one outside surface 17of the device body, the user may clean exposed skin to remove anyremaining moisture. A deodorant may be provided if desired.

The construction details of the invention are such that the device maybe made inexpensively. The wall materials may be cellulosic and plastic,for example, or may include a cellulose layer treated to be waterresistant. The layers may be made of different materials by technologiessuch as are known for the production of diapers. Manufacturing methodsfor fusion of multilayered sheet materials at seams 9 between the edgesof two sheets are known in the art.

FIG. 3A is a perspective view of a sanitary, disposable condom-receivingmember 20 with lip 21 formed at the open end 22 around the pouch cavity3, the lip folded over and edgedly sealed for guiding a drawstring 23 topull the pouch closed so that a used condom (inside) can be disposed of.One construction of the lip is shown in more detail in FIG. 3B. The lip21 sheet material forms a fold for containing the drawstring 23. Thedrawstring may be a thread, ribbon or filament inserted duringmanufacture. The purpose of the drawstring is to close the pouch afterthe used condom is removed and is contained inside.

The advantages of the present invention, without limitation, includethat it is disposable and exceedingly easy to transport. It is notcostly to package and produce. Most commonly device will be folded up topocket size and packaged with a condom. Further, the device generallywill easily concealable on someone's person. Further, the devices aresanitary and can easily be disposed of while not displaying thecontents.

In broad embodiment, the present invention is a disposable pouch for anypost-coital personal sanitation, and permit condom removal and disposalwithout contamination of the hands.

In alternative constructions, the tubular body 2 may be modified toimprove condom disposal, for example with a kink (FIG. 4: 40) so thatthe condom is prevented from slipping out of the pouch, or crenulations(FIG. 5: 50) to facilitate placing the device “sleeve” over the penis.The body sleeve is optionally tapered or conical and may have a variablegirth. In one instance, a bulbous tip is included for enclosing the usedcondom.

The device may also be formed as a mitten, where the pouch is configuredfor receiving a hand inside, which is then used to grasp the used condomon the penis and pull it off, and the mitten is then turned inside outto enclose the condom. A device functioning as a thumb-less mitten isdepicted in FIG. 6A. The body 60 includes an open end 61 and a closedend 62 and forms a walled pouch. Each wall 63 has an inside surface 64and an outside surface 65 which may be selected for theirwater-resistance and absorbency. In a preferred construction, wall 70construction is formed of three layers (65, 66, 67), as shown in FIG.6B. The outside layer 65 for grasping the condom has an absorbentsurface 68, the intermediate layer 66 is water-resistant, and the insidelayer 67 has an absorbent surface 69. As a first step, the mitten isused to wipe off the affected surfaces. The condom on the penis is thengrasped and removed; everting the mitten seals the condom inside. Aftereversion of the pouch to capture the condom, a fresh inside surface isexposed on the exterior and may be used for a final wipe of theperigenital areas.

FIG. 7 depicts a combination 70 of a condom 71 and a representativedevice 72 of the invention, here shown folded for packaging. The condomis shown packaged in a clear envelope 73. The two may be providedtogether as a convenience to the user in the form of a kit. Optionally astrap may be provided on the folded pouch so that it can be secureduntil needed. The kit may be provided in a small box or bag with printedinstructions on the box (not shown) or attached thereto.

Although the above detailed description contains many specific detailsfor the purposes of illustration, one of skill in the art willappreciate that many variations and alterations to the following detailsare within the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the generallyrepresentative embodiments of the invention described herein are setforth without any loss of generality to, and without imposinglimitations upon, the claimed invention.

While the above is a complete description of the preferred embodimentsof the present invention, various alternatives, modifications andequivalents are possible. These embodiments, alternatives, modificationsand equivalents may be combined to provide further embodiments of thepresent invention. Therefore, in the following claims, the terms usedshould not be construed or constructed to limit the claims to thespecific embodiments disclosed in the specification, but should beconstrued and constructed to encompass and include all possibleembodiments to which such claims are entitled. Accordingly, the claimsare not limited by the specifics of the disclosure.

1. A condom disposal device for removing a used condom from a penis,comprising a condom-receiving pouch having an inside surface and anoutside surface wherein said inside surface is an absorbent material andsaid outside surface is a water-resistant material, saidcondom-receiving pouch with an opening having dimensions and internalspace proportioned for enclosingly removing the condom from the penis byhand after coitus.
 2. The device of claim 1, further comprising anoutside adsorbent layer.
 3. The device of claim 1, wherein said pouchcomprises a generally tubular section having an open end and a closedend.
 4. The device of claim 3, further wherein said open end comprises alip with drawstring for sealing the used condom within said pouch. 5.The device of claim 3, further where said generally tubular section iscrinkled, tapered, bulbous, or kinked.
 6. The device of claim 1, whereinsaid pouch is a mitten proportioned for wearing over a hand whenremoving the condom, and said mitten is configured to be turned insideout after removing the condom, enclosing the used condom therein.
 7. Thedevice of claim 6, wherein said mitten has an outside adsorbent layer orpad overlying said water-resistant outside surface.
 8. A kit comprisinga condom and said condom-disposal device of claim
 1. 9. The kit of claim8, wherein said condom-disposal device comprises a strap.